Manchester United and Manchester City are and always will be strong rivals, but their rivalry has extended to the January and summer transfer windows as well.
Today is Harry Maguire and Fred's 28th birthday, so we thought we'd take a look at how different things may have been for the Manchester United combo.
They will have to temper their birthday celebrations, however, because they have a difficult away match against Manchester City on the horizon.
Maguire and Fred have a birthday, as well as a similar scenario in which both studs purportedly turned down the offers of the defending champions in favor of joining United.
But, as Ralf Rangnick's side prepare to meet Pep Guardiola's men at the Etihad Stadium in a match neither side can afford to lose, Mirror Football looks at seven United players who turned down City to join the club.
Robin van Persie is a Dutch footballer.
In 2013, Van Persie led United to the Premier League title.
In 2013, Van Persie led United to the Premier League title.
In an extremely unprecedented turn of events, the Premier League title battle came down to who could sign Robin van Persie.
The then-Arsenal captain was coming off a season in which he scored 30 goals for the Gunners and was absolutely unstoppable.
While Juventus was rumored to be interested in the Dutchman, it was clear that the Manchester clubs were in a two-horse fight for his talents.
Sir Alex Ferguson eventually persuaded the predatory forward to join United, and his 26 Premier League goals spurred United to their last Premier League title.
Cristiano Ronaldo is a Portuguese footballer who plays for Real Madrid
Ronaldo's stunning transfer to Manchester United has resulted in a mixed bag of results for both the player and the team.
When Raphael Varane and Jadon Sancho arrived before August, it appeared that United's work was done.
United's transfer chiefs and executives, on the other hand, were sent scurrying when it was revealed that Cristiano Ronaldo was on his way to Manchester City.
But, after a few phone conversations from Ferguson and a perplexed and puzzled Rio Ferdinand, Ronaldo couldn't resist the call from Old Trafford and clinched an emotional homecoming to the Reds.
Paul Pogba is a French footballer who plays for Manchester United.
For Pogba's signature, United had to fight City tooth and nail.
Paul Pogba became one of the most sought-after players in the world after his inspirational performance in Juventus' journey to the 2015 Champions League final.
And his performances in Manchester were too good to ignore, with both City and United vying for his services.
Pogba chose to return to United for a then-world-record £89 million transfer price, despite the fact that Yaya Toure could not persuade him otherwise.
Berbatov, Dimitar
Berbatov had made it clear that he wanted to join City.
When we think of Dimitar Berbatov, the first two words that come to mind are elegance and class.
However, when his agent apparently offered a rumored deal to join Manchester City over United, the Bulgarian striker reportedly told him to "fuck off."
Alexis Sanchez is a Chilean footballer who plays for
United gave up Mkhitaryan in order to sign Sanchez.
Alexis Sanchez's signature, like that of Robin van Persie, was supposed to be the deciding factor in who won the Premier League between United and City.
Sanchez arrived at Old Trafford in the 2018 January transfer window with the help of Henrikh Mkhitaryan's move to Arsenal in the opposite direction and a readiness to pay Sanchez the £14 million per year salaries he demanded.
His presence, however, had the opposite impact, as City went on to win the title by an incredible 19 points.
Since joining United, Fernandes has been a revelation.
City has been able to count themselves fortunate in recent years because United has beaten them to certain players.
Bruno Fernandes, on the other hand, has been nothing short of remarkable since joining United for £47 million in the January 2020 transfer window.
Previously, the Guardian said that City were the favourites to sign the Portuguese ace, with a deal anticipated to be completed 'in the next few weeks.'
However, no deal materialized, and Fernandes is now a regular starter for the Reds.
Telles, Alex
When Telles was playing for Porto, he was linked with a move to City.
The Etihad Stadium was set to undergo a roster renewal following a shaky championship defense in the 2019-20 Premier League season.
Correio da Manha, a Portuguese outlet, said City sought to sign Alex Telles from Porto, according to Sport Witness.
The Reds, on the other hand, were able to secure his signing in a £14 million transaction.
Telles fell below Luke Shaw in the pecking order, but since Rangnick replaced Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, he has made more regular appearances.
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